Brooke Westshore School is an independent, for-profit boarding school serving grades 7 through 12. The client’s mandate was to create a fully functioning campus—including dormitories, classrooms, a gymnasium, and a dining hall—on a very tight site, under a strict budget, and with a fast-tracked timeline to open for the September school year. CLA was brought in after the project’s initial development to provide pragmatic, experience-based solutions, drawing on our extensive portfolio of independent school projects to deliver a complete campus that met the client’s financial and operational expectations.

The project required thoughtful collaboration with the client, consultants, and construction partner Kinetic Construction to ensure that value was demonstrated at every step. Leveraging our integrated design process, we balanced scope, cost, and schedule while coordinating a complex team under demanding conditions. Prefabricated structural cassettes were introduced—our first project to employ this approach—enabling rapid construction of the dormitory building at the pace of one floor per week. This innovation, coupled with Lean construction practices on site, allowed mechanical and electrical trades to proceed efficiently and the school to open on time.

Environmental sensitivity shaped every design decision. The site is located in a riparian area with sensitive wetlands, and protecting this ecology became a central design driver. Working closely with biologists, CLA refined setbacks and integrated the ecological features into the educational experience, creating outdoor learning opportunities connected to the preserved wetland. Classrooms were designed as one-sided through-spaces to maximize daylight, natural ventilation, and passive solar gains, while a high-performance building envelope reduced reliance on mechanical systems. External circulation was employed to take advantage of the mild climate, minimizing energy use while enhancing the student experience.

The resulting campus is compact, efficient, and flexible. Multi-use classrooms, labs, and a modest gymnasium provide adaptable learning and recreation spaces for a smaller student population, while the courtyard layout establishes a secure and cohesive environment for resident students.

Brooke Westshore School demonstrates how collaborative design, environmental responsibility, and innovative construction can deliver a complete educational campus within strict financial, ecological, and schedule constraints.